Sunday, October 20th the Annual Calypso & Soca Awards music will be held at the popular Caribbean restaurant Windies, 3330 Lawrence Ave. East, in Scarborough.

This year’s Awards show starts at 2:00 pm and will be featuring a young cast of new singers – Rashida, Mahayah, Ngozi and Masada. This exciting crop of young, female singers are leading the charge to get more children and youth involved in the art of singing Calypso, a 200-year old music tradition.

Special Guest for the evening is Macomere Fifi, the winner of the ‘Kaiso 365’, held July 28th at the Chinese Cultural Centre. Fifi just returned from a tour to London, U.K. where she was a huge hit in their Notting Carnival calypso tent.

The evening of entertainment will be hosted by BJ Thornhill, the son of calypso veteran and founder of the Kaiso Forum Calypso Tent – Bryan ‘Structure’ Thornhill.

“The focus on youth will be a major theme in the year to come”, notes Angela Pierre, Program Coordinator, OCPA. “We feel this art form has a lot to offer young Canadians, especially those of Caribbean descent.”

Admission is $15. and the doors open at 1:00 pm. For additional information please call 416-445-3919.

Canada's 2013 Calypso Monarch - Macomere Fifi - made a special appearance at the U.K.'s Calypso Monarch Finals in London, giving the British calypso fans a taste of her powerful voice and control of the stage. Fifi is in London as part of an exchange program between OCPA and the Association of British Calypsonians (ABC) that saw their 2012 Monarch Sheldon Skeete in Toronto for the Kaiso 365 and the Calypso STARS. Below Fifi and St. Kitts & Nevis' Monarch King Socrates are seen posing for photographers with Sheldon Skeete (centre) who successfully defended his crown. Photos by Johnathan Milton. To see more photos of the U.K. Finals please visit: http://www.miltonpictures.co.uk/

Reigning Calypso monarch Macomere Fifi did the seemingly impossible by winning the Kaiso 365 Calypso Monarch for the fifth time and winning every category - music, lyrics, arrangement, rendition, topic, humour and presentation.

The Tobago-born stood head and shoulders above the field of nine singers to capture Canada's biggest Calypso prize and become the 2013 Calypso monarch. The results:

1. Macome Fifi

2. Structure

3. King Cosmos

4. Pan Man Pat

5. Dennis James

6. Connector

7. Dynasty

8. Spivey

9. Redman

Macomere Fifi will be featured on Monday, August 5th at the Calypso STARS concert on the WestJet stage at Harbourfront Centre at 4:00 - 6:00 pm. It's a free concert and a great chance to hear her, along with Britain's 2012 Calypso Monarch Sheldon Skeete and a star-studded cast of calypso and soca entertainers.

'Kaiso 365' Calypso Monarch competition finalists

The popular Calypso Monarch competition's preliminary round was held

July 6th and 7th. A panel of judges chose eight singers from the Professionals

and Kaiso Forum calypso tents. The "tents" are a series of shows that are

held every summer and feature the latest songs from many of the top calypso

OCPA's President, Colin Benjamin is looking forward to seeing new faces at this year's 2013 Calypso Monarch competition. "We welcome young talent and fresh voices to help make our music appeal to the next generation," offers Mr. Benjamin. "It's always exciting to see young singers discover this great art form and learn to master its unique syncopation and style."

A total of $10,000.00 in cash prizes, plus gifts and trips are up for grabs in the 2013 Calypso Monarch competition sponsored by the Organization of Calypso Performing Artistes (OCPA).

Singers have to perform two original songs before a panel of expert judges in a set of preliminary rounds that will take place in early July. Eight singers will eventually be chosen to star in the 'Kaiso 365' Finals which will be held at the P.C. Ho Theatre, Chinese Cultural Centre, Toronto.

OCPA has been staging calypso singing competitions in Toronto every year going back to 1980. This year the organization will be offering the winner $5,000. cash prize and bookings to perform at Toronto's Harbourfront Centre, at the Georgia Caribbean Carnival in Atlanta, Georgia, and at London's Notting Hill carnival. Last year's winner Tara Woods a.k.a. Macomere Fifi, also received a flat-screen TV.

Many of the competing singers in the past have come out of the annual calypso "tents" – a series of shows that run during the month of June. This year, OCPA will hold additional judging events for new entrants who wish to try their luck and vie for Canada's top calypso prize.

On Sunday, May 26thHogan Chevrolet, Mas Toronto and the Organization of Calypso Performing Artistes (OCPA) get together to fight cancer and present a free community party hosted by Mas Toronto at its Mas Camp in Scarborough.

The party is an afternoon of fun and entertainment in the Mas Camp`s parking lot at 730 Military Trail (Morningside Ave. & Ellesmere Rd.). From noon until 4:00 pm the latest Chevrolet, Buick and GMC models will be available for test drives and Hogan Chevrolet will donate $25.00 to the Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer for each test drive taken. There will be DJ music and a BBQ and soft drinks on sale to raise funds. Also, there will be draws for special prizes and gifts. Admission is free.

Mas Toronto will display the adult costumes for Toronto Caribbean Carnival festival. The costumes were designed by Andrew Lue Shue and feature the theme "Timeline".

The entertainment highlight of the afternoon will be a special calypso and soca song contest sponsored by Hogan Chevrolet. Eight singers will perform new promotional songs created to celebrate the occasion, including popular calypso heavyweights like Structure, Redman, The Juiceman, The Web, Connector and newcomer, The X-Factor.

Toronto Mas Band leader Garvin Crichlow is pleased to be able to support Hogan Chevrolet and this event. The calypsonians are putting the final touches on their new compositions and excited about the chance to help raise money and awareness of the work of the Enbridge Ride to Conquer Cancer.